Storage

In an electricity grid which doesn’t have coal fired power stations providing continuous generation, there’s a need for the support of big batteries to ensure power reliability and help to modernise the electricity grid.

In June 2023, the Hazelwood Battery Energy Storage System (HBESS) was commissioned, operating on the site of the former Hazelwood Power Station, in the Latrobe Valley. This battery can store the equivalent of one hour of energy generation from rooftop solar systems from 30,000 homes.

Victoria is also the home of the 300-megawatt Victorian Big Battery, the largest lithium-ion battery in the southern hemisphere.

Victoria is leading the nation in neighbourhood-scale batteries, with the Victorian Budget 2023/24 investing $42.2 million to install 100 new neighbourhood batteries at targeted locations across Victoria – tripling the number of homes with access to a battery and providing crucial extra storage capacity for local communities.

At household level, the Solar Homes Program has already helped more than 13,800 Victorian households install their own batteries to maximise the benefits of rooftop solar.

Visit Victoria’s Renewable Energy and Storage Targets to learn more.